AARON RAMSEY has hit back at Wayne Rooney’s taunt that Arsenal always choke after Christmas.

The Gunners face Rooney’s Manchester United on Sunday five points clear at the top of the table and following a 1-0 win at Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Rooney claimed in the week that Arsene Wenger’s men regularly tail off after starting out strong, but Ramsey said: “The boss told us the other day that, from January, we’re the team in the league who have picked up the most points.

“I don’t think our form has been that bad after Christmas. In the last few seasons, we’ve had to dig in and get a load of points to get fourth place.

“Our biggest problem over the last few seasons has been starting off well – but we have managed to do that this season. If we get ourselves into a strong position then our ability to get as many points as we can in the run-in has been second to none.

“We had a fantastic run-in last season and, after the let-down of the opening game this term, losing 3-1 at home to Aston Villa, we have managed to build on that.

“If we can keep it going up until Christmas then we know that we have the ability to compete.”

Arsenal have lost just once in the top flight since early March and go to Old Trafford on the back of a run of 14 wins and a draw in 15 away games in all competitions.

Ramsey insisted he and his team-mates had nothing to fear from United, who have had an inconsistent opening to the season under new manager David Moyes.

“They’ve had a bit of a rough start,” said Ramsey.

“They’ve had a few good results so they’re getting their confidence back up, but we’re really confident ourselves and our away record has been really good.

“It’s going to be another massive game. This was always going to be a big week for us and we couldn’t have got off to a better start. Hopefully we can go to Old Trafford and finish off the job.

“A win there would be massive. We’re on good form in the league as well, so why not go there and win?”

Ramsey, 22, has been outstanding with 11 goals this season in all competitions, including the only goal of the game at Dortmund, which kept the Gunners top of Group F.

Wayne Rooney teased that Arsenal always choke after Christmas [EPA]

It says a lot about our spirit

Aaron Ramsey

“I was delighted with the goal and with the way the team played,” said Ramsey.

“We learnt from the first game with them. We were caught on the counter-attack, even though we were dominant at that stage in the game. So this time we defended well as a team and restricted them to long-range efforts.

“We did what they did to us the other day – we hit them on the counter-attack and then put the ball in the back of the net.

“It says a lot about our spirit. I looked at the stats as I came out for the second half and we still had more possession than them even though they had created more opportunities. ”

And with that in mind, Ramsey has warned United of what is in store for them.

He said: “With the players we have and the quality in this team, we are always dangerous no matter even if we have just one opportunity. We have the capability of taking that opportunity.

“I’m enjoying my football and every time I get into a goalscoring opportunity I feel confident of putting the ball into the back of the net.”

Ramsey’s fellow midfielder Tomas Rosicky said the team had developed a new toughness, which will help them end their trophy drought which dates back to the 2005 FA Cup.

He said: “We have added this kind of resilience. When we were 1-0 up, we had two or three chances when we could score in the last 10 to 15 minutes.

“You could see how we played very well defensively. We created a very good barrier so they couldn’t go through us.

“In the past it’s true we didn’t have this aspect of the game. But now we have this quality it could make all the difference.”